Tried Shopping Without Plastic Packaging

JAKARTA - If you are on Christmas and New Year holidays, and want to try a different sensation of monthly shopping, maybe trying out shopping at The Bulkstore.co could be an interesting choice for you. This shop is located in the Wahid Hasyim area, Central Jakarta.

This small shop opens at 08.30 WIB and closes at 21.30 WIB. There are various kinds of goods available in this shop, such as herbs, tea, coffee, chocolate, nuts, health supplements and even compost.

The VOI team stopped by Bulkstore & co. We came around 11.30 WIB and at that time we just came to visit the shop.

Knowing that we were confused about the shopping system at this shop, one of the shop employees on duty, Fatin, finally accompanied us.

"If all here are self-service, sis. Usually people come with their own containers but some really want to try them, so we provide various containers that can be reusable too," said Fatin when talking with us at his shop. , Saturday, December 28th.

The types of containers they provide also vary with different prices. One paper bag costs IDR 1,000 and can be used for spices, tea or coffee.

There are also jars or jars of various sizes, and also for those who need a plastic bag, this shop is also available but not an ordinary plastic bag but a thelo bag, which can decompose if exposed to water at a price of IDR 3,000 for a large size.

Fatin said, this shop actually opened six months ago, namely in May 2019. According to him, quite a lot of people know about the existence of this shop, and they often become regular customers at his place of work.

"They are mostly people who are aware of plastic waste. The containers used are also reusable containers," he said.

He explained that usually the most sought-after customers at his shop are superfruit, such as chia seeds, raisins and dried blueberries, which are sold in grams and consumers can freely pick them up and adjust them according to their needs.

We also tried shopping there. Fatin advised us to buy tea made from chamomile flowers.

"He can be brewed directly plus honey, delicious. Suitable for those who are not feeling well with the weather like today," he said.

Following Fatin's advice, we took a large jar filled with dried chamomile flowers. When opened, the aroma of chamomile immediately bursts the nose. The spoon is ready in the jar, we just need to scoop out how much is needed.

For the price, one gram of dried chamomile flowers costs IDR 2,600. We took about five grams, that is, the total we had to pay was around Rp.13 thousand.

There's not enough chamomile, we're also interested in buying peppermint leaves which can also be brewed into tea. Like when we opened the jar of chamomile, when we opened the jar of dried peppermint leaves, the scent of mint burst our noses. Refreshing aroma.

In total we bought five grams of dried peppermint leaves for IDR 9 thousand. For peppermint leaves, which have a refreshing aroma, one gram is priced at IDR 1,800.

We also had time to tour the shop. They also sell their own handmade and handmade soaps and are guaranteed to use organic ingredients. Not only soap, there are also shampoo and conditioner.

Uniquely, they sell it not in the form of bottles but in the form of a dispenser and visitors who want to buy just need to prepare the containers they have brought.

In addition, if you want to find liquor, fruitwines are also available with an alcohol content of up to 14 percent. This fruitwine comes in various flavors such as salak pondoh, coffee, mango, and banana.

"Women usually like salak pondoh, because they are smoother. Men mostly take the coffee. He is homemade sis, the supplier makes it directly," he said.

If you are looking for snacks, various snacks are also available there. Crispy kale, almonds, and chocolate are also sold there. You can also drink herbal medicine at The Bulkstore & co. because they also sell various herbs such as kencur rice, spice ginger, tamarind turmeric, and pletok beer.

All of these drinks are packaged in small glass bottles and are sold for around Rp. 30 thousand. In addition, there are also bulk models of herbal medicine that are calculated per liter and can be poured directly into the drinking bottles you carry.